Pipe bomb scare forces evacuations in Reading

Thursday

May 25, 2017 at 9:18 AMMay 25, 2017 at 9:18 AM

WCVB

A pipe bomb scare at a Reading home forced a neighborhood to evacuate Wednesday, reports Wicked Local news partner WCVB.

Authorities said they responded to a home on Rachel Road near Summer Avenue at 6:15 p.m., where they observed a suspicious device and cordoned off the area. The man had been mowing his lawn when he discovered what he thought was a pipe bomb.

The bomb squad performed a controlled action on the device just after 9:45 p.m. During a press conference following the action, police said they determined the device was not a pipe bomb, but are still investigating what the device was.

Police did say the device was six to eight inches long and had wires coming out of it.

The home and neighboring residences were evacuated as a precaution, but residents were allowed to return to their homes after 10 p.m.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the ATF also responded to the scene. No one was injured.